TNA Blog Zone – Calamity Clair And The Downfall Of Daniels

I will fully admit that I have no clue about contracts of this type and have never had to deal with no compete clauses or nondisclosure clauses, but I have to say that TNA is either really smart or really daft with this Steiner thing. Either they put some serious clauses in Steiner’s contract from the start, and he agree to it and will have some legal issues, or they think they were covered better than they were and will be laughed out of court.

Now, Steiner is known to be of the mouthy sort, he will talk smack if there’s smack to be talked about, it’s pretty much a given. The thing I question about this all is that everyone already knows 96% of what he’s been saying on Twitter, so is TNA being jerks, or do they honestly believe they have a case and no one has a clue of which he’s speaking?

There’s so many variables here, few of which we actually know, but there is one thing that seems to be coming about, the WWE. I find it very interesting that Steiner is not just up in the alumni section of dot.com, but also that they’re toting it on the main page. To me, not saying I have any information on this – that’s Richard’s gig – it looks as though WWE might be willing to help Steiner through any legal troubles he might have with TNA. Not saying Steiner will be brought in by the WWE, or used in any way, but I wouldn’t be surprised if a lawyer or two were sent his way, gratis, of course. Be interesting to see what goes down from here with all these TNA lawsuits.

I just want to throw this in here, just in case TNA changes the point system part way through the series, as an wrestling company is wont to do when they need something to go down a certain way. It was posted on this episode of Impact and I want to put it here, possibly for posterity if TNA goes all screwy on us.

Just to explain, I saw the last forty minutes of Impact, then went back to watch the rest and Blog the whole thing. There might be a few comments that don’t work out perfectly because I saw the end before the rest, but please bear with me and know that I love writing about wrestling, even TNA, more than most will ever know. It’s something that means so much to me, and means even more that you are willing to read what I write and argue with me about how you saw something, or why you think I totally missed the boat on something.

Post Show

Video > B

Not a bad video, didn’t draw things out and set up for the show without dragging things out too long. Maybe this is a new direction for them? One can only hope.

In Ring Segment (13:01)> A

Summer Bash? Why is this the Summer Bash? Yes, it’s Open Fight Night, and I’m thrilled Impact is live this summer, but Summer Bash? Actually, I think the shows have been better since going live – much better – and I hope things continue in this direction. I really like that the Gut Check is a woman, and that Hogan wouldn’t even play the video of Sting’s attack! That is a very different way of going about things and I’m impressed. Yes, I said it, I’m impressed with something TNA is doing!

Aries dissed Hogan’s handshake, love it! Further showing Aries’ character and it added another layer to who Aries is. Aries is right about the X Division Title being what TNA was built on. But I think Hogan is wrong about one person holding both Titles as Aries is one of the few men (Angle and Joe) who could hold both straps. Wow, I take back my complaint there. I like Option C! I think it’s a wonderful and creative idea. And as much as I loath Aries handing over his strap and possibly being screwed, Aries so easily could win back the X Division Title, and in reality, he doesn’t need that belt to show the world how amazing he is. Aries is the man, and doesn’t need to beat the man (Roode) to prove it to anyone right now – though it would be great to see!

Roode cutting down the X Division Title was funny to hear. I also have to say that Roode got his edge back this week. He was so flat last week that I wondered who had peed in his cheerios, but he has that spunk right back this week. I’ve said numerous times that Roode reminds me of a young Triple H, and that segment gave me that feel again. It’s something intangible that brings me back to Trip when he was much younger, and a bit wilder. Trip, when he’s a heel, was more apt to flee a fight than jump in, but Roode impressed me that he did jump right in here. Nice to see him not backing down, for once. Plus, it gave Snow, D-Lo and Kenney their TV time!

Anderson ending this segment the way he did, after all that Aries and Roode fun, well he just sealed it for me as a GREAT segment, in spite of Hogan, not because of him.

BFG Series Match – Anderson vs Daniels (3:32) > B

What is it with Daniels appletinis? They look like a piss test gone horribly wrong! Wait, I can’t say much as my drink of choice is a Midori sour, but an appletini just seems so girly! Okay, probably what they were going after, but if they really wanted to do that, give him something with an umbrella. And I’m not even going to talk about what a bad precedent he’s setting by drinking booze before a match, on the way to the ring!

I can’t say this was a bad match as a lot of solid moves were hit, and there was emotion in this ring, but something about it felt off to me. Honestly, I can’t put my finger on it as these guys are both awesome, but not as awesome as I’m used to from both of them. It was more than an average match, so it deserves the grade it received, but it just wasn’t stellar. It didn’t help that it wasn’t a long match, but we’re used to short matches from TNA and these guys know how to work them. I’m going to chalk it up to something being just the tiniest bit off somewhere, so they didn’t shine as well as they normally do, though they were solid.

Winner – Anderson +7

Backstage Segment > B+

They handled that segment really well. They continued to push the question along, made us wonder if there really is something going on between Dixie and AJ. I have to say I’m still enjoying this storyline, and think it’s one of the better storylines TNA has given us in a while. They’ve really strung it along. I did get annoyed a few times about it going too slow, but it’s picked back up again in a big way.

Backstage Segment > D-

Another meeting to decide who will go after a Title? What is it with the Hogans? I did like that Madison was thrown out of the running for a Knockouts Title Match because of the man she’s mooning over. It keeps that storyline going without telling us anything about who that man is. Well played, at least for that tiny little bit of this segment. What I don’t like is how badly Hogan’s never ending meeting went, yet Brooke is now doing the exact same thing. It makes no sense at all to me. And where was Love, Winter, Rosita, Sarita and Tara? To me, other than that tiny bit about Madison, was a colossal waste of time!

BFG Series Match – Robbie E w/ T vs Angle (0:33) > B+

Robbie calling out any gerbil in the series was funny, but not as funny as Angle’s face when he accepted. Angle hitting three Germans, the Angle slam, then the ankle lock and it was over, well, perfectly Angle and just beautiful. Angle didn’t even give T time to get involved. I know I’ll catch crap for giving this match a better grade than the last, but this match had more character, more pizzazz in that short amount of time. It was a mixture of the way Angle worked the ring, and his facial expressions through the whole thing.

Winner – Angle +10

Video > B

Taeler Hendrix, what an odd way to spell a name, but it is actually her first name, from what I can find. While I know she wanted to say ‘What made me want to become a pro wrestler’, the lack of the word want really threw me and would have made her come off as a total jerk if she didn’t seem so sweet. I really like this girl (so far, from this tiny video), but does she have a character of any sort? Last month Joey Ryan was so over the top when it comes to character that it seems odd to have this sweet girl from Massachusetts without some crazy gimmick.

BFG Series Match – Magnus vs AJ (2:30) > A

Magnus did a great job of setting up his match and pushing the AJ storyline that much further. Magnus has been impressive on the mic since joining with Joe, but this was just one more step further. That the wrestler ‘stepping out on his wife’ and ‘sleeping with the boss’ is still one of the most beloved faces on the roster is something I find truly humorous! The men who could be so over as a face to be in AJ’s spot is few and far between. I also have to say that each week I find it stranger and stranger to write about AJ. On Monday and Tuesday it’s a sexy little crazy chick, but on Thursday it’s a sexy southern guy who’s let TNA for the past ten years. Going back and forth, writing about both of them with the same name, it sometimes boggles my mind, even though it’s something as little as two letters.

I’m very impressed that Magnus caught AJ mid-air, they are of a size, but that move Magnus hit was beautiful! Then there’s AJ who was playing things off, just a tiny bit. His drop kick was solid, but then pele was well wide of his mark. He had his solid moments and his distracted moments, but of course he hadn’t a chance when Daniels and Kaz came rushing out. Both AJ and Magnus handled that short match so creatively. They were both solidly in character, told a lovely story with their bodies, and hit some moves that were just sick! While I normally complain when I match that’s so great is cut short, but that just tied up that short story in a perfect way. That match didn’t need to be any longer to show or tell us anything more. AJ is always at the top of his game, but this brought Magnus up another level for me as he worked this so effortlessly with AJ. Bravo!

Winner – Magnus +7

Gut Check – Taeler Hendrix vs Tara (2:32) > C+

Is Tara turning heel, or it just Tara protecting her own future by not taking any crap from this upstart, no matter how sweet, cute or stacked she is? I have to say Taeler was a bit spastic, screechy and overzealous, but I can see why fans might like her after she settles in a bit – if given the chance to do so. Taz said the fans were chanting for Taeler, but I couldn’t tell if it was Taeler , or Tara they were chanting for. Taeler took the widow’s peak and sold it very well. I will say I was impressed with Tara being cool with her after the match. I can’t say this was the best Knockouts match we’ve seen recently, but I will say the Knockouts matches have been a lot better than they were. This was a bit above average for me, even though Taeler obviously had some serious nerves going on. I can see Taeler and Tara giving us solid B matches if she’s brought in and calms down a bit.

The one thing I keep going back to with Gut Check is I don’t see why they’re making such a big deal about bringing these new kids in when they’re not even showing half the roster most weeks on Impact. I can’t remember the last time I saw Winter and Love (I actually went and checked the roster page to see if they were still with the company), and before that horrible ‘meeting’ with Brooke earlier, it’s been weeks since we’ve seen Velvet, Mickie and ODB. I can understand that fresh talent is always good for a company, but why not use some of the amazing talent already under contract? I actually think Taeler would be a lovely addition to the Knockouts, but I want to see Love and Winter as well. It did just hit me that the two redheaded women on TNA are not actual wrestlers at this point. Taeler could be the shocking Sheamus of the Knockouts? Just a thought, don’t beat me up for it!

Winner – Tara

Backstage Segment > A-

Joseph is so great! I can’t get over his facial expressions and growing courage. He works so wonderfully with Bully and this is a great storyline for Bully. He can bot Bully Joseph, but then be taken apart by Abyss. Very creative and the two men are working it superbly!

BFG Series Match – Joe vs Storm (3:59) > A-

Oh! I like Joe’s trunks! They fit his body better than his regular parti-color trunks. That bit of a gut Joe has makes him look that much lumpier in regular trunks – either under the gut, or pulled over the way Joe wore them. These hang well on him, have an unexpected cut, and hide a multitude of body issues. I really like them and is a move I’ve been hoping he’d go for a very long time – no matter his weight, though he is a bit heavier right now.

I really like that Joe called out Storm. That Storm was the person who ended Crimson’s streak, even though I’d been calling for Joe to do it all along, then last week when it was Joe who Storm eliminated to win the Battle Royal, this was perfectly obvious. It was great that the fans were giving dueling chants for these two, but then Joe didn’t hit his fast snap slam as fast or as cleanly as normal. I was shocked, and worried as Storm seemed to land on his head, but Storm seemed fine.

These two hit hard and fought hard in this match. Again, it wasn’t a very long match, but dang they put it all out there for ever moment of this. Both of these men can work down and dirty brawling matches, or finesse their way through with the fliers. Both are so versatile, so this match could have gone either way, but I’m thrilled it was all muscle and brawl. That Joe handed over the beer bottle when it was over was a perfect way to seal the deal and show the respect.

Winner – Storm +7

Video > C

Knowing what was coming at the end of the show, some of it doesn’t jive with some of the things that went down leading up to all this. I will say that the video was good, hit most of the important points of the storyline without dragging it out too much. I guess I understand why they felt they needed to show this, but how many people are tuning in this week who haven’t been tuning in, well, since Impact went live? Too much looking back and not enough looking forward for TNA.

Backstage Segment > B

I will say that Dixie and AJ are still doing a good job of this. It doesn’t exactly follow with Dixie saying she doesn’t want to be a character in TNA, on TV, but maybe that draw of being on TV is too much? Then again this storyline wouldn’t work with anyone but Dixie and the face of TNA, the beloved baby face through the better part of the past ten years. Yes, AJ has been heel, but he’s so much better as a face. Personally, I have a hard time believing AJ as a heel.

Backstage Segment > D-

And this horrible mess continues! Only because ODB puts a smile on my face did Brooke not fail miserably here.

BFG Series Match – Bully vs Pope (3:46) > B+

“Do you know who I am?” Bully has done amazing things with that line! If he was in the WWE, people would be saying that on a regular basis (you can’t see me), but since he’s in TNA, I don’t see it happening. I will say he’s running with it and doing a great job. Pope might not think so, but that’s how it it when you’ve been gone for… from what I can see, the better part of five months. Last seen in January at Genesis feuding with Devon. Then again, no matter who you are, you’re going to be at the back end of Bully’s bullying!

Bully was hitting hard right from the start. He didn’t hold anything back, or didn’t seem to until a sad looking kidney shot. That splash would have sucked for Pope if he hadn’t moved! Pope’s shoulder block was sweet, but the elbows were a bit lame looking. I thought Pope was going to land on his bum outside after landing on Bully, as he got a bit caught in the ropes, but handled it well. I understand why the match was cut off where it was, and the continuing story was told, but I wanted more for Pope. I know he got the seven points, and he proved that he wasn’t an easy ten points for Bully, but he’s still left without a direction. If he’d been around and had been feuding with other people and was in transition, it might work, but he’s freshly back and still without direction after two matches. Hopefully they find something for him soon. There has to be a heel in need of a feud… what about Gunner?

I have to say that Abyss’ wig really sucks. He keeps making sure it hood is up, so no clue what the fake hair looks like under there, but the way the curls hang in the front make it look like a terrible hair piece. I also have to say that Abyss without some scruff on his face looks wrong. I know he’s clean shaven as Joseph, I just wish there was a way to make Abyss look more facially scruffy, more like the Abyss I adore. What it is with me and big, hairy masked men?

Winner – Pope +7

Backstage Segment (0:32) > D-

Why is it that every time Hogan talks to RVD backstage we end up seeing him face Hardy? I’m so sick of these two fighting each other! I’m over it, and I’m over the Hogan clan on Impact.

Backstage Segment > F!

Oh, gee, who will Brooke pick to face Tessmacher? I don’t care who Brooke picks, just stop wasting our time with all this crap and give us the freaking match! I should have known that all Brooke would be was a colossal waste of TV time. And I don’t know any executives who dress like that to go to work.

Video > A+

I know it was a promo for Destination X, but that was brilliant! Bravo TNA production!

Video > B/F

I know, you don’t like country music, but I do. I can’t say it was the best song, or best video in the world, but it wasn’t bad. Sure was a heck of a lot better than Mickie’s songs! You will be happy to know that the F came from Stacy. I might have turned him into a wrestling fan, but he will never be a country music fan!

Knockouts Title Match – Tessmacher (C) vs Mickie (5:21) > B

I keep watching Tessmacher and I just can’t put my finger on what it is that confuses me so much about her. She’s a very pretty girl, but her proportions are off somehow. Angelina Love has a really long torso and very short legs in comparison. I think Tessmacher has some of that going on, but she also has a very sway back which makes her caboose stick out in an odd way. Again, I think she’s a beautiful girl, and I’m very impressed with how her ring work has progressed. She’s put a lot of work into learning her craft and that impresses me.

Then we have to see Brooke again. And Brooke GAVE Velvet the music video? Yeah, that’s believable! All that talk about Tessmacher’s body, at least her bod is ring ready. Watching Mickie in the ring, her gut is still rather chubbier than it once was. She’s also a beautiful girl, but it doesn’t seem as if she cares enough about wrestling to put in the time to keep her physique up to where it once was. She seems a bit trimmer than a few months ago, but still not back to her fighting weight. And I have one more thing to say about Mickie before diving into the match, and it’s probably going to come off as a very nasty comment, but it’s been sitting there in my mind since I turned on the TV a tiny bit before this match started. With everything going on with Cena and his divorce, his wife digging into possible infidelities, Kenny Doane’s statements as of late, is there a reason TNA put Mickie in this match over Velvet? The IWC is talking about Mickie a lot more than Velvet right now. I could be completely wrong, but I have that niggling thought in the back of my mind, and we all know Bisch’s feeling about things Controversy Creates Cash! Be curious to see if anyone else came to this conclusion or if it’s just my own sick brain seeing these things where they really aren’t.

Wow, some nice mat work, holds and reversals from these Knockouts! These are things we’ve seen from Mickie, but Tessmacher impressed me that much more. Then they went hard hitting and Tessmacher looked just as strong. While I don’t like it when someone yells to the get the fans hyped up with them, but it works for Tessmacher somehow. I could rip Tessmacher apart and say it took her too long to reverse out of Mickie’s finishing spike DDT, but Tessmacher is still a bit green and that’s to be understood. Compared to the rest of the match, that momentary hesitation was nothing. I’m very impressed with the growth in Tessmacher and we see it in every match. That was a solid B and well earned!

Winner – Tessmacher

BFG Series Match – RVD vs Hardy (3:45) > B

I really like that the ten minute time limit has been added to the BFG Series. It was something I always liked about TNA’s matches. I always knew what I was dealing with for the matches, and if it was coming down on ten minutes, it added the excitement and worry that maybe they wouldn’t finish in the time allotted and would they add five minutes, or cut it off there. It’s something I thought worked well for TNA, made it different, stand out, like the six sided ring – something I haven’t complained at all about lately, but it is something that is still burning, festering, in the back of my mind. I’m still not happy that Hogan and Bisch took away something that was so integral to the look and feel of TNA.

I openly saw RVD calling moves and he didn’t even try to cover it. We all know they do it, but not to cover in any way kind of kills my ability to suspend my disbelief. And while RVD it, was Hardy who was on in this match. He was hitting almost everything beautifully! Even every bump looked great. RVD, when he was standing up top, didn’t look at all comfortable, the way he usually does. Actually, re-watching the whole match, RVD seemed slightly off through it all. He was both off a beat and bumbling in his movements. Some of his moves were solid, such as his split-leg moonsault, but his overall work and feel was really clunky. If RVD flipping off the top had landed, that would have been absolutely sick. I don’t remember seeing RVD do that, or at least not in a very long time! Hardy being right on the mark and RVD being so off balanced it out to a good grade, but not as high as it could have been And where does TNA get off giving these two less than four minutes in the ring? I know I was complaining about these two facing off again, but if they’re going to do it, at least give them the time to really do it right!

Winner – Hardy +7

In Ring Segment > F

Honestly, the first time through, I don’t know what to think about this whole segment. I’m going to watch it through again before I go any further. Nope, watched it again, still sucked eggs in a big way! There was so many good directions that they could have gone with this, but this wasn’t one of them. As if Dixie wouldn’t tell Serge about this after all this had come out in such a damning way. If Dixie’s family has been so with Clair, how did Serge not know anything about this. Dixie and AJ would rather people think they were having a torrid love affair than tell those they’re married to? It just doesn’t ring true. The photo and wasn’t an embrace? The video was Dixie trying to help her?

And she knows Daniels? Yes, she knows he was lying about the possible affair, but she made it sound as though there was more there. Obviously Daniels and Kaz knew the truth, but it still sounds like there’s more there. Though I’m not sure if I care about any of it at this point because that swerve was stupider than words.

Post Show

After the way this Impact ended, I’m really worried about the Joseph/Bully/Abyss storyline. If they could make such a bloody mess of all that, but without any blood on the mat, who knows what they could do with the other leading storyline. I’d been hoping all the stupidity would be only around the Hogans, like a radius of crap that wouldn’t extend any further than so many paces, but I guess not. Just when I think they’ve pulled their heads out of their bums, they go and do something daft like that. I’m going to bed and hope I wake up and that last segment never happened. Good night.

Connect With WNW

Great job KB I mostly agree with you. I really lijed Hemdrix bit as you said tjere are so,many great Knocloits we dont get to see. I dont thonk Tara is going heel especialy with tje show of respect at the end. Ithink tjat was a ” Welcome to the Bog Leaugues Rook” from a tough veteran.

Steve l

The Claire thing wasnt great but at least it was am emding. There were holes in it sure but it was better tham turining them both heel and making Dixie into Vickie. It was a good plot that dug a hard hole to get out of.

Logan_Walker

I Don't Usually Look At the TNA Blogs But The Blog i was reading from Alex Barie & KB's i might start watching TNA TV

Liam

The opening segment was great. I thought Aries giving up the title would put the title under, but he did a great job of showing the importence of the X division and the title. And I think it’s a really cool idea for the X division champion to be able to cash the title in at Destination X every year. As for the Clair thing, well that was just not good. They could have at least gotten a better actor. The storyline could have been taken in a much better direction. Hell, even having Styles or Dixie being the addict would have been better

D-Bag

Anybody else notice the TV title wasn't defended this week?

Brad

It was defended on Xplosion, but against Robbie E….Again

Brad

Oops sorry wrong week

Lee McAndrew

Sorry Clair, you won't be winning any Oscars for your performance here.

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